Archive for January, 2012

Photojournalism is a form of journalism, wherein the person clicks, develops, and submits images relevant to a news story. Initially, the term ‘photojournalism’ was restricted to still photography. Its scope has now widened and in the present time, photo journalists even shoot videos to come up with a good news item/ feature – a trend commonly seen in citizen journalism. Photo journalism is not merely about taking the best shots, but also how to click news-worthy photographs, in accordance with the interest of the reader. Generally, the work of a photojournalist is quite similar to a reporter, except the fact that a photo journalist doesn’t gather, write, and report news stories. To become a successful photojournalist, one should have thorough knowledge about the three principles of photo journalism – timeliness, objectivity, and narrative. He/She should be able to use modern gadgets like digital camera, state-of-the-art studios, and other software in order to develop quality photographs. Photojournalism is a lucrative career option in India, since it has become an integral part of mainstream journalism. As a result, many institutions that offer courses in journalism have also included photo journalism in their curriculum.

Career Prospects
Photojournalists can work for newspapers, magazines, or any other media houses. One can opt for commercial photography, fashion photography, industrial photography, wildlife photography, aerial photography, scientific photography, etc. as his/her specialized field.

One of the biggest means of entertainment is television and radio. Although utilities of radio have dipped down a little bit, still with the emergence of FM radios in various cities, the popularity remains intact. According to a government study more than eighty percent of the households in the country have TV sets and more than two thirds people in metros have cable connection which is even spreading rapidly to smaller towns and sub-urban areas through DTH services. Undoubtly electronics media is playing a significant role in nation’s making by disseminating information to the people and also being an alternative public grievances redressal mechanism.

Career ProspectsThe proliferation of TV channels particularly a number of 24/7 channels have opened up career opportunities in electronics media. Career options are there in public broadcasting agencies like Doordarshan and All India Radio or in private broadcasters. One can be a field reporter, writer, editor, researcher, correspondent and in-studio anchor, presenter and news analysts. These professionals also can work in a number of fields like direction, production, camera, graphics, editing, sound, programme research, script writing etc. Moreover one can open his own TV/RM Radio channel.

Video editing is all about selecting and rearranging fragments of video/footage collected from various sources in order to construct a meaningful visual. An important element of post-production work in electronic media, video editing has speedily emerged as a lucrative career option, due to the increasing popularity of the audio-visual media. Production houses and news channels are now on a hunt for highly skilled video editors, who can give meaning to the episodes and news items produced by them. The aesthetic beauty of the final product depends on the talent and proficiency of a video editor. A video editor should be a self-motivated person, since this position demands lots of patience and dedication towards work. He/She should be a visionary, technically skilled, and possess a logical and critical mind, who can revise his/her knowledge constantly. He/She should be able to visualize the ideas running, hither and thither, in the mind of the producer/director of the show.

Course Details
Video editing requires technical training. Only a person with sound knowledge of video editing software can pursue a career in this field. Numerous institutions conduct diploma and certificate courses to train young aspirants. The courses are offered at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Any person, who has an inclination towards working on computers and is capable of handling digital equipments, can think of a career in video editing. Generally, the curriculum of such programs provides detailed knowledge of software like Final Cut Pro, U Lead Media Studio, Avid’s Media Composer, Xpress Pro, Adobe Premiere, Sony Vegas Pro, Blender etc. which are extensively used in video editing.

Career Prospects
Numerous film and TV production studios, web designing companies, news channels, advertising houses, and multimedia companies hire video editors. The emergence of video and movie clips on websites has widened the scope of video editors in cyber media as well, where they can earn handsome salaries on part-time jobs. Also, a number of organizations recruit video editors on short-term contract basis and full-time employment basis, depending upon the choice of the candidates.

CAREERS IN SCREENPLAY WRITING

Screenplay can be defined as a written document that consists of the story of a film or a television program. Through screenplay, one can describe all visual and behavioral elements which are essential for explaining a story. All the work of a director, cast, editor, and production team revolves around the screenplay or the script. Therefore, it becomes highly significant for a scriptwriter to draft a script that is comprehensive and clear, so as to let every member of the team (in a film or a television program) get a brief idea about the narrative. There are two important components of writing a screenplay – action and dialogue. While action is written in present tense, dialogues, on the other hand, are written for the characters of the film/television serial/telefilm. Therefore, screenplay or scriptwriting depends on the mind and thinking of a scriptwriter. Screenplay writing has emerged as a well-paid job, because success of a motion picture predominantly lies in its screenplay. A number of institutes in India conduct courses for screenplay writing.

Career ProspectsScreenplay can prove to be highly lucrative yet challenging, at the same time. The result of a film or a television program largely depends upon the way the screenplay is written. After pursuing a course in screenplay writing, one can develop screenplay for stories from different genres, such as comedy, drama, science fiction, action, romantic etc.

RemunerationScreenplay writers can earn respectable five- to six-figure salaries. However, the remuneration solely depends upon the writer’s work, creativity, and thinking. The salary also varies according to the type of project one is associated with – whether it is a film, short-story, telefilm, or television serial.

Radio Jockey is specially someone who plays music on radio of his own and audiences’ choice simultaneously interacting with people, delivering relevant local, national & international news and information in his very own style. As a backstage performer a RJ has to visualize the words comes out of his throat. A RJ career require enthusiasm, rationality , creativity of mind , good sense of humor, excellent communication skills & ownership of a live appealing voice. Radio jockeying, though a non-conventional career, is fast catching up with other traditional jobs. With the advent of FM channels, Radio Jockeying has become a popular career option for many youngsters.

Career ProspectsThe domain which was previously dominated by the state owned AIR is seeing huge investment by private concerns. This factor has led to an increase in job opportunities for radio jockeys. The job of a Radio Jockey is of diversifying nature depending on the subject matter of the programme. Radio Jockeys can find work in organizations like AIR (All India Radio) and other independent radio stations. AIR (All India Radio) holds auditions for RJs every 3 months in their radio stations in various cities especially in metros. Because of their voice standard, RJ can do voice-overs for television and radio advertisements. They can also lend their voices to audio magazines and documentaries. RJs also can anchor or compeer TV shows or live shows or events.

RemunerationRadio Jockeys are in much demand with the opening of the air waves to the private sector. The beginners in the initial stage can earn between Rs. 7,000 to Rs. 15,000 per month. For sponsored programs, software producing companies may pay between Rs 1400 to Rs 2500 per show. After a few years of experience, the earnings can be raised double and depending on the popularity of their shows, RJ’s can earn between Rs 15,000 up to Rs 85,000 per month. As a radio jockey, besides getting contractual good money you earn by doing Ad commercials. You can earn more by doing voice-overs for television and radio advertisements.

In simple terms public relation management is concerned with maintenance of mutual relations and understanding between an organisation and the whole group of public related to it, which includes shareholders, government, consumers, employees and the media. The main function of public relation managers is to ensure proper channel of communication between the management and employees. PR management is becoming a promising career option at a time when private as well as government companies and organizations are facing cut throat global competition to market their product, service and facilities.

Course DetailsDiploma and Post-Graduate Diploma courses are available in PR management. Duration of most the courses is of one year. The minimum eligibility for these courses is a Bachelor’s degree in any discipline. Apart from this there are also short term certificate courses. For these courses the minimum qualification is 10+2 pass or equivalent.Career ProspectsPR managers are responsible for effective communication and play a very important role in the matter of policy planning. They also maintain healthy coordination between various departments within the organisation itself. Thus in future bright career options are waiting for PR managers. They can find suitable employment opportunities in both public and private sectors. Government departments and agencies require the expartisation of PR managers. They also can find employment in corporate houses and media houses. Banking, finance, insurance, investment and export companies also require the expartisation of PR managers. Hotels, tour and travel agencies and private consultancy firms also employ PR managers. They also can find work with political figures, models and film stars to deal with various aspects of public relation.

RemunerationJob opportunities for public relation managers are increasing in leaps and bounds because of increasing market demand. So the remunerations of public relation managers are also very high. One can expects Rs 15,000 to 20,000 per month in the beginning. With gaining of experience and expartisation one can reach up to the top level of public relation department. At this level one can expect lakhs of rupees for annum.

TV news anchor or program anchor is a person, who delivers news or programs of any kind – whether it is a film-based program, comedy show, reality show, or crime-related report. A mediator between the channel and the audience, a TV anchor is a reservoir of knowledge, is aware of the current political scenario, and possesses detailed knowledge of issues. With the increasing popularity of the telecast media, the task of news reading and presenting a program has become highly challenging. a news reader or a program presenter not only has to provide information, but also has to convey the same in an entertaining and compelling manner. A successful TV anchor is one who is enthusiastic, passionate, energetic, dynamic, and vivacious. He/She should be aware of his/her duties and responsibilities, and collect information to his/her best knowledge and sources, without exaggerating the actual facts. The nature of the program determines the conduct of its anchor. For instance, if the program is an entertaining show, the anchor must indulge in light-hearted and jovial conversation with the guests/audience, should crack jokes at the right time, and must exude a vibrant attitude. Conversely, if the program, so aired, revolves around a delicate and serious issue, then the anchor should prefer to stay calm and composed.